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M7 Priest
The 105 mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M7 was an American self-propelled artillery vehicle produced during World War II. It was given the official service name 105 mm Self Propelled Gun, Priest by the British Army, due to the pulpit-like machine gun ring, and following on from the Bishop and the contemporary Deacon self-propelled guns. Overview While towed artillery is fine for the infantry divisions, an armored force requires a good self-propelled artillery piece which can keep up with the tanks as they advance. US tank officers were all too aware of this fact and requested artillery weapons that could keep pace with the rapid advance of the tanks. The first attempt at mechanisation resulted in the T19 105mm HMC; an M3 105mm howitzer paired with an M3 half-track. Far from satisfied with this design, the Ordnance Department hit pay dirt by mounting the same 105mm howitzer to the M3 tank chassis (and later the M4 chassis). The British gave the M7 105mm Howitzer Motor Carriage the nickname ‘Priest’ because of the pulpit-like appearance of its machine-gun mounting ring. This design was known as the M7 105mm HMC and first entered combat during the campaign in Sicily in July 1943 and served with distinction in both the European and Pacific theatres throughout the course of the war. The M7 105mm HMC however, would prove to be only self-propelled artillery piece of note in the US Army during World War Two with over 4000 vehicles being produced by the end of the war. The self-propelled M7 Priest HMC is an essential arm of American combat commands. They followed the advance and gave immediate support when needed. Often batteries from corps were also attached to add even more firepower. In Flames of War The M7 Priest is deployed as artillery support for tank and infantry companies. They are available both for Mid-War and Late-War period, providing long-range backup. The batteries can be deployed either with three or six vehicles in both periods of war. They can be supplemented with Artillery Observers, though the Under Command special rule allows using any tank or infantry unit from the formation as the spotter. Model kits The first released set was the UBX12 Armored Artillery Battery, which contained three metal/resin M7 HMC Priest self-propelled guns, one observer M4 Sherman tank, one command carbine team, and one staff team with two rare earth magnets and one US Decal sheet. There was also a single-model blister US43 M7 Priest HMC available, with one model with crew figurines. A new plastic set was released in 2017, first as a TANKS expansion set and a part of the US Combat Command Army deal, later supplemented by Mid-War sets. Those can be found in the following sets: * USAB09 US Combat Command (three tanks included) * UBX54 M7 Priest Artillery Battery (three tanks with one crew sprue, Mid-War decals, and Unit Cards) * TANKS48 Priest Tank expansion set (one model with Tank Card and Upgrade Cards) * TANKS63 Priest (RHA) Tank expansion set (basically the same model as TANKS48, with different cards) Model assembly The metal-resin UBX12 Those are composed of the resin hull superstructure, plastic threads and soft metal gun with additional details. * Begin assembly by attaching the tracks to the hull of the M7 Priest HMC. Each track has a number of lugs on the back that corresponds with the recesses in the hull to aid in correct orientation. * Next, attach the 105mm main gun. The hull has two small notches in the gun cradle where the gun barrel rests. * Time to attach the MG ring; this attached to the hull on the front right-hand side of the hull. * Next, attached the .50 cal AA MG to the MG ring. * Finally, add the crew to the fighting compartment of the M7 Priest HMC. With the crew in place, the M7 Priest HMC to ready for painting. The plastic model kits Despite having more parts than the UBX12, those are not demanding to build. * Begin assembly of the Priest by attaching the rear hull plate to the hull. * Next, attach the transmission cover to the hull. * Next, attach the right-hand side tracks to the hull. * Attach the left-hand side tracks to the hull. * Next, fit the footwell into the hull bottom. * Mount the body on to the hull assembly. * Next, glue the main gun into position. * Add the pulpit to the upper hull. * Add the MG to the front of the pulpit. * Add commander and crew using super glue. Painting The US Army Just like all the armoured vehicles used by the US Army in North Africa 1942-43, Italy 1943-45 and North-Western Europe 1944-45, the M7 was painted in the No.9 Lusterless Olive Drab colour. During the 1944/45 Winter in North-Western Europe, whitewash was applied on vehicles. The British Army and the Commonwealth The first M7 Priests received by the British Army in 1942 were painted sand yellow with applied black blotches of camouflage. The vehicles used in the Italian Campaign 1943-45 and in North-Western Europe were either left in their original colour, or repainted into the British Olive Drab tone. Combat efficiency The M7 Priest battery should be used as mobile artillery support for the formation it was assigned to. The ability to put a smoke screen helps much in protecting own forces from the enemy fire. Under Command special rule allows any unit from tank or infantry formation spotting for the battery, thus an artillery observer is not necessary to guide the M7 battery fire. Despite having good Anti-Tank value of 9 and Firepower 2+, the M7 should only be used as an anti-tank weapon of last resort due to its poor armour and Slow Firing rule. A successful artillery bombardment has chances of destroying tanks with Top Armour 0 and 1, while heavier tanks might only be bailed out on a roll of 1. Image gallery USAB09-14.png UBX12.jpg|The UBX12 box front. UBX12a.jpg|The rear side of the UBX12 box. UBX54.jpg|The UBX54 box front. UBX54-02.jpg|The UBX54 box rear. TANKS-Priest-Preview-Web.jpg|TANKS48 box front. USPriest.jpg|TANKS unit card. Category:Vehicles Category:Tanks Category:Armoured Tanks Category:Tank Teams Category:Artillery Category:American Category:Allied Category:Mid-war Category:Late-war